Tsuna stared at his visitor with shock and a bit of suspicion. Even after a period of time in the mafia, he was still awed to see his father, much less in the early morning without a beer can in sight and in his (or rather, Nono's) office. It was rather winding, so Tsuna just decided to go with the flow and sidestepped his Father to sit at his usual seat at the desk.
"Sorry for being late," he said, body remembering the lessons on etiquette Reborn instilled into him even when his mind was a bit of a mess. "How have you been, otou-san?"
Iemitsu smiled wanly. "Fine. I was just here to talk about the g- I mean, Miss M.M."
Tsuna's hands tightened where they were closed upon the desk, but his face remained clear of any ill will. Instead, he feigned surprise.
"M.M? What for?"
Now Iemitsu wasn't an idiot. He could tell. His father paled.
"I...realise I may have been too..harsh on her." Iemitsu looked cowed, ducking into himself. He didn't quite seem to meet Tsuna's eyes. "Reborn...was the one who opened my eyes." He took a deep breath, and squared himself up. Tsuna could see him clench his fists. "I...decided. To trust you, I mean. You're grown up now. I just...you grew up so fast." His voice turned slow near the end, wistful.
Tsuna knew, ever since he had learnt of mafia, that Iemitsu wasn't all at fault. Something he had learnt during his journey as Decimo was that to best protect the people closest to you, especially those not already in the mafia, keep them far away as possible.
He wished he could do the same with M.M, a part of him would always respect his father for being able to be away from his mother even though he love her so much. He could never keep himself away from a loved one. He couldn't even drag up the will to try. But he wouldn't have to, he supposed, since she was adept at what she did.
"I guess I have grown up a lot," murmured Tsuna. "Maybe we should catch up."
Iemitsu blinked, his eyes shuttering in disbelief. Tsuna felt a surge of doubt.
"You...don't want to?" Iemitsu flinched, before shaking his head vigorously.
"I want to."
Tsuna grinned, before, in a moment that shocked both his father and him, reached over to hug Iemitsu. His words were spoken into his dad's shoulder, and his voice was small.
"Thanks, Dad."
Iemitsu nodded, happiness shining in his eyes. He held onto his son before he blinked and realised something.
"Oh, right. I forgot. Tsuna..."
Tsuna had a bad feeling rumbling in his chest.
When M.M went down for lunch the next afternoon, she found herself surprised by the fact that only Tsuna was there. Ever since they had arrived, the Decimo Generation Guardians would always eat together. No matter what. Hence her freezing at the sight.
"Oh, hey." Tsuna waved her over, already pouring out a cup of tea for her. Green tea, she recognised. Tsuna smiled. "The others are out on missions. Refused to tell me anything about it. I'm their boss though." Tsuna huffed.
M.M nodded slowly, cutting into her baguette. A part of her was starting to realise that every time she had lunch with Tsuna, her food was usually French. Her chest fluttered at that thought. They ate in silence for a while, though it wasn't uncomfortable.
"Oh, M.M?"
She looked up, her lunch melting on her tongue. She still disliked the Vongola, but they were wise to spend their unwarranted wealth on good chefs.
"We're gonna meet the Council tomorrow."
What.
"They wanted to see the progress of my chosen partner." Tsuna gave a weak smile. "And I chose you so..."
She flushed, the idea that someone actually wanted her making her a little dizzy. Opposite her, Tsuna's cheeks burned like a fire, and he began to stutter.
"I-I me-an, y-you d-don't have to, b-but-"
"I don't mind." She interrupted, forcing the words out. Almost instinctively, she turned up her nose and cross one leg over the other. "Since you asked,"
Tsuna almost seemed to beam then, and she almost winced at the cheeriness.
"What?" She murmured, though it still sounded too harsh.
"Nothing," Tsuna sang cheekily, "I just thought that it's great. You're finally yourself again."
M.M sputtered, and Tsuna realised that his words were a bit too mushy to be spoken aloud. He waved his arms wildly, flush bright red on his cheeks. He covered his face, letting out an embarrassed moan. In an act of courage, M.M reached forward and pulled his hands down. Her heart was thundering in her ears as her fingers laced around his. Tsuna met her eyes, and she stared into his.
"Tsuna, I wanted to say this before, but... I mean... I lo-"
"Hey, Tsuna!"
They split apart like they burned each other as the dining room doors opened, revealing some of the Guardians. Namely, Yamamoto, Gokudera and Chrome. The Rain Guardian stared at them, smile half frozen on his face as he took notice of the bright red blushes on the duo's faces. He laughed awkwardly, turning to Tsuna apologetically.
"Ah...Did I interrupt?"
As it was, the Guardians had entered because of separate reasons. Chrome wanted to talk to M.M about something 'personal, Boss. Please excuse us' and had dragged her off towards the rooms (which one specifically, Tsuna didn't know. There was too many of them.) His best friends, on the other hand, came to talk to him about something else. Yamamoto floundered, sheepishly apologising.
"Sorry, Tsuna..." He looked so remarkably like a puppy that Tsuna just shook his head. A part of him was a bit jittery though, the nerves from before still buzzed at the back of his head. He closed his eyes, and pushed it down. Gokudera waved a file.
"The Nono's Guardians dropped this off. It's a file about Nono. His..." Gokudera's face turned ashen. "His medical records."
The thoughts in Tsuna's head turned oddly muted as he accepted the file. His fingers were numb, and it took more effort than he would have liked to open it. His heart fell as his eyes moved over the words. He gave a long sigh, closing his eyes as he snapped the file closed. The noise echoed through the dining room. He thrust the file back to Gokudera. His eyes blazed orange as he pushed past them.
"Do not tell anyone about this matter. They might panic, and if the news gets out that..." Tsuna caught his tongue. "There may be more families hoping for a little luck. Increase the number of guards with Nono, and do not let anyone but our closest allies visit him."
"But Jyuudaime, more people will come find you." Tsuna pursed his lips, before shaking his head.
"I can protect myself. Prioritise Nono...and any civilian connections." Yamamoto stiffened at that. The previous future still stabbed at him from time to time. His hands shifted over Shigure Kintoki, and he grit his teeth. Tsuna patted him on the back as he turned to leave. His face was ashen as he stepped away, and even Gokudera hesitated before he posed his question.
"Jyuudaime, where-"
"I need to get an audience with the Council."
Tsuna left, his head strangely coherent, and his hands clenched tight.
They were running out of time.
Chrome managed too drag M.M several feet away until M.M began to struggle. At that, Chrome let go of her wrist so easily that M.M wondered if she should have struggled a bit earlier. The Vongola Guardian seemed to be hesitating, her face strangely pale and her eye downcast. She looked sick. M.M, in a strange show of compassion, peered up at her. Her voice was awkward, but she could feel Chrome's hands shaking when she was dragging them across the hallway.
"Hey...You okay?"
Chrome flinched, before giving a strangled laugh. "Y-yeah, I'm fine. What makes you think I'm not?"
M.M narrowed her eyes, before deciding to drop the matter. It probably had nothing to do with her.
"Well, you had popped up in the middle of nowhere and interrupted..." M.M trailed off, cursing the fact that the memory alone made her cheeks taint red.
Chrome looked at her curiously, and gave a soft laugh. She seemed more relaxed, though a part of it still seemed fabricated.
"Sorry," the girl teased, her voice hinting amusement.
They stood awkwardly in the middle of the hallway for a few moments, before M.M swallowed and dipped her head down.
"I think...I should...apologise..." She said, eyes staring intently on the ground, "for what I did. Before."
Chrome blinked once. Twice.
Her eye shone, and a smile crept onto her face, the first genuine one she had given.
"T...Then...Can we be friends?"
M.M felt herself begin to decline, before she bit her tongue. She grit her teeth, and let out a long sigh. "I...can try."
Chrome grinned, before nodding. "That's okay."
Soon enough they began to walk again, this time sharing an aimless conversation as they went.
Hey guys! It's been forever. As of now I'm on the train to school, so sorry if I have any grammar matter that I missed. As usual, please review.